• My Admin
• 1 days ago

Tired of paying high commissions to restaurant aggregators? We hear you!

Ordering via third-party aggregators comes easy and quick to customers. But for restaurants, the inside story is different.

With food aggregators like Uber Eats, Swiggy, GrubHub, etc. entering the industry, restaurants have witnessed a boost in sales. But there's another side to the coin.

As the restaurants earn well, they also pay high commissions to these food aggregators. So, the deal between restaurants and third-party aggregators is not so cost-effective.

If you are running a restaurant, this blog is for you!

In this blog, we'll give 7 actionable tips that you can use to save yourself from paying huge commissions to the restaurant aggregators.

So, no more delays. Let's start!

7 Best Strategies to Avoid Paying High Commissions to Restaurant Aggregators

1.Reaching Out to Customers Directly Works Well

To eliminate third-party interference, connect with customers directly. But, how does that work?

Reaching out to customers directly makes your brand more visible. You can establish better relationships with customers and convince them to place direct orders. Here's how you can directly connect with customers.

• Text Marketing
Though texts or SMS are not used much for messaging by customers. But whenever the SMS tone rings, customers do check who they are from. Using text marketing, you can send customers new item alerts, promotions, coupon codes, exclusive deals, etc. You can also attach a link or contact number for a better response.

Pro Tip: Texts have a character limit (max 160 characters). So, write an attention-grabbing first line!

SMSes have an opening rate as high as 98% which can be used to your advantage. Using SMS push can increase brand awareness and its high opening rates can boost your conversions as well.


• Push messages
Push messages or notifications are the ones that pop up on your devices and give you an alert or a friendly reminder. It can also pop up to reveal updates, provide offers, deals, etc.

Web push notifications, in 2020, boosted the conversion rate by 28% which is nearly a 500% increase compared to past years.

So, you can use this amazing marketing tool to connect with customers over social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook Messenger.

Pro Tip: For a high Click Through Rate (CTR) keep the push notifications within 10 words.


• WhatsApp messages
WhatsApp is undeniably customers' favorite messaging app. WhatsApp messages have an open rate of 99%. So, utilize it in your favor.

Send a quick message to customers about the new item you added to your menu, the latest discounts, or the exclusive offers customized for them.

Pro Tip: Keep customers updated through WhatsApp. Communicate frequently but don't bombard them with regular messages.

2. Boost engagement and Orders Over Social Media Platforms

Restaurants have great opportunities to connect with customers over social media. Take, for example, Instagram. You can utilize your Instagram account to post delicious pictures of foods and label it '15% discount. Grab Now!'. Plus, Instagram also offers the 'Order Food' button that directly takes the customer to the restaurant website to order food.

Instagram also offers the opportunity of placing direct orders via private messaging. Customers can now directly message you on your Instagram business account to place their orders.

With Get FOSA, integrated in your Instagram business account, you can rely on the bot to take the orders. Plus, customers get exclusive offers on products.

Facebook is another huge platform for restaurants. You can share your products, offers, deals and attach your website link to take orders. Take a look at how a restaurant does this-



Reference: Upmenu.com

Ninjagrill utilizes the Facebook platform to share its deals. It has posted its special offer on burgers with the website link attached to the post for orders.

Orders can also be taken via WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Google Business Messaging. All you need to do is set up an AI Chatbot to effectively engage customers and take orders.

Click-to-WhatsApp ads are also a thing on social media. Restaurants can use it effectively to draw customers' attention and of course, orders!



Reference: Shoppop.com

Look at this click-to-WhatsApp ad by a restaurant.

The restaurant has shared ads on Facebook and Instagram with a button to WhatsApp. As customers see these ads on their social media, they can jump directly to WhatsApp with a touch on the button. Over WhatsApp, they can place their orders with ease.

3. Make Your Website Seen for Customers to Order Directly

Direct ordering is gaining popularity as restaurants are putting in their efforts to encourage customers.

So, how do you convince customers to order directly from your website? Simply by increasing your website visibility and luring customers through special offers and deals.

Today's smart consumers are well aware of the different ways to order food. All they do is compare the prices. So, if you offer the same items at a discounted price when ordered online (via website), who will even bother ordering from third-party platforms?!

An outstanding example of direct online ordering is Domino's. No restaurant aggregator could take over the delivery of Domino's Pizzas. Currently, the brand is pulling more customers towards direct ordering by offering huge discounts. 50% off on Mondays, Flat instant discounts on being vaccinated, etc. are all making customers order pizza via Domino's website and app.

4. Track Customers Who Order Directly & Treat Them Well

Who doesn't like to feel special? Everyone does! So do your customers!

So, make a list of the customers who follow your direct ordering channels – website, app, Instagram, or WhatsApp and make them feel special. Offer them exclusive offers and deals. For example, you can send them flash sale messages like "50% discount on Burgers from 4-5 pm. Hurry!"

Plus, you can also send them exclusive deals that are customized just for them. For example, send a quick personalized message over WhatsApp and offer them a 25% discount on combo meals or a happy hour where they can order anything at 20% off.

Such offers are sure to make the customers happy and guess what? More customers are going to place direct orders.

5. Offer Referral Program to Your Direct Ordering Customers

Referral programs work well if you know when to send, to whom, and how. Referral programs are quick to work and are an amazing way of word-of-mouth marketing.

So, use your existing customers who place direct orders to expand your customer base. Send them referrals so that they invite their friends and family to place direct orders at your restaurant.

For example, your referral program can be "Invite family & friends and get a flat discount of 20% on your next 3 orders". Similarly, you can also offer free delivery, buy 1 + get 1 offer and so much more.

So, make your ordering process and customer service seamless. And don't forget to experiment with your referral programs!

6. Provide Customers with Delivery Services Who Order Via Phone Calls

Customers mainly prefer third-party platforms like Uber Eats, Zomato, Swiggy, etc. because of their ease of delivery. Customers no longer need to go to the restaurants and collect their orders.

To maintain this ease of delivery for customers, provide them with delivery services when they call and place an order. Direct phone calls for an order do not mean that customers will have to collect it. Make the delivery process seamless by providing them with services.

You might be wondering "what if I do not have a delivery service at my restaurant?"

For you, we have FOSA. At Get FOSA, you can avail only delivery services. That means, if customers are placing an order via phone call and you have no delivery service of your own, then Get FOSA delivery services is just a call away. Contact us and we will ensure that the food is safely delivered!

7. Create and Share QR Code with Links to Your Social Media

QR Codes are an easy and contactless way to take orders and payments. Create a QR Code menu for your restaurant and provide your social media handles with it. So, by scanning the QR Code, your customers can download the menu and easily order on any social media platform like Instagram. Google Business Message or WhatsApp.

You can share these QR Codes as hard copies with customers when they visit your restaurant or order for takeaways. Scanning the QR code will ensure that they always have your restaurant menu on their smartphones with no worries about misplacing it.

Get Ready to Rule Direct Online Ordering with FOSA

Taking direct orders may seem to be an enormous task. But when you start making yourself visible, things are sure to get easier. Focus on making the order process seamless and easy.

Customers leave mid-way if they find the process to be time-consuming. So, connect all your social media handles and the website well. Leave your contact as a signpost that can lead customers to you seamlessly.

Get FOSA is here to make your task a little easier. You can integrate FOSA with your social media channels like WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, or your Website. Then, leave it on FOSA to engage customers, take orders and payments.